Retail market in Germany: Around 500,000 m² of take-up in city centre locations
for the first time since 2019 - very good final quarter provides tailwind for 2025
The already good letting momentum of the first three quarters gained further pace towards the end of the year: Overall, the nationwide retail market broke through the 500,000 m² mark in the past 12 months for the first time since 2019 (around 506,000 m² take-up in Q1-4 2024). This corresponds to an increase in the result of around 15% compared to the previous year, which had to be corrected considerably because of the already cancelled major deals of the Modehaus Aachener (Q1-4 2023: around 440,000 m²). The slight upward trend at the end of the year also sends a positive signal for further development in 2025: At around 147,000 m², the best quarter of the year was achieved in the final quarter and a comparable volume was generated as in the fourth quarter of 2019. Although there are still many retailers that have to annouce bankruptcy and close a large part or all of their chain store network, an increasing number of brands are taking advantage of the current situation and continuing or even expanding their focus on the highstreet retail market. However, the extent to which the cautiously optimistic mood can be carried over into 2025 depends not least on how sustainable the very large-scale new lettings in particular are. Experience from 2023 has shown exactly this.